It is often necessary to analyze mixtures to determine what components they contain. This is true, for example, in the field of forensic science. Specifically, a forensic scientist may be called upon to analyze a sample from the scene of a fire or an explosion that occurred. In the case of a fire, the scientist may need to determine if an ignitable liquid is present in a fire debris sample. In the case of an explosion, the scientist may need to identify explosive materials that were used to cause the explosion.
There are various methods for identifying a particular chemical compound in a mixture often by separation of the chemicals prior to identification. In other cases, however, it is necessary to identify the class to which a particular combination of chemicals pertains. For example, it may be desired to determine what class of ignitable liquid (e.g., gasoline, normal alkane, etc.) is present in a fire debris sample. In this example, gasoline is comprised of a combination of individual chemicals, and that combination of chemicals constitutes a component of the mixture. The mixture contains the component and additional chemicals that may comprise other components. Existing identification methods are not designed to make such component classifications in complex mixtures. It can therefore be appreciated that it would be desirable to have an effective system and method for classifying a component of a mixture.